Local paper included in preservation program

The program is a long-term effort to create an Internet database of newspapers nationwide with historically significant information. It builds upon the successful United Sates Newspaper Program, which ran from 1982-2009, according to the Chronicling American Web site. That program organized the inventory, cataloging and selec...

By MARY BARKER
mbarker@cheboygantribune.com
CHEBOYGAN – In the beginning, The Cheboygan Daily Tribune was known as Northern Tribune from 1875-1885. This historic predecessor of our hometown newspaper is one of about 15 selected statewide to participate in a nationwide program called Chronicling America.
Chronicling America, chroniclingamerica.loc.gov, provides access to information about historic newspapers and select digitized pages produced by the National Digital Newspaper Program, (NDNP). The NDNP is a partnership between the National Endowment for the Humanities, (NEH), and the Library of Congress, (LC), which provides a great deal of technical support.
The program is a long-term effort to create an Internet database of newspapers nationwide with historically significant information. It builds upon the successful United Sates Newspaper Program, which ran from 1982-2009, according to the Chronicling American Web site. That program organized the inventory, cataloging and selective preservation on microfilm of historic newspapers nationwide from 1690 to present.
Under the Chronicle America program, two-year NDPH awards are granted to select and digitize approximately 100,000 newspaper pages representing the state's regional history, geographic coverage, and significant events of a time period between 1836 and 1922. Since 2005, the NEH has awarded grants to state libraries, historical societies and universities.
Central Michigan University has a long history of preserving Michigan newspapers through microfilming and received a two-year award to digitize select papers across the state under the NEH grant program. CMU received the initial grant in 2012 and plants to solicit more funding to continue its work.
Frank Boles, director of CMU's Clarke Historical Library, said the next logical step after microfilming is digitizing newspapers' pages and putting them online. He said CMU appointed a selection committee to determine which Michigan newspapers would be selected for digitization once the grant was awarded.
“We had some criteria to guide us. We wanted a broad section of the state based on geographic areas and significant historical events. There were some technical issues about the microfilming itself that impacted our choices. Cheboygan was selected because it is a port city and then it became a tourism destination,” said Boles.
Another example was the newspaper in Calumet, Mich., in the Upper Peninsula. Boles said it was selected because of the Great Copper Strike of 1913, which made national headlines a century ago.
Boles explained that CMU has just sent its first group of digitized newspaper pages to the Chronicle American Web site and expects the pages to be activated within a week to ten days. The Northern Tribune is among the first group, so those pages should be available for viewing shortly.
Visitors to chroniclingamerica.loc.gov will find and easy-to-navigate Web site listing states and newspapers that are available to view. In addition to being able to call up and view the actual digitized page for the time period selected, viewers can search the entire database of all newspapers posted based on subject, alphabet or date range.
Subject categories include American Enterprise, Industrialization and Development; Arts and Culture; Crimes and Trials of the Century; Natural Wonders, Disasters and the Environment; Politics, Government and World Leaders; Public Spirit, Exhibitions and Celebrations; Science, Technology and Innovation; Sports and American Pastimes; Struggle for Human Rights and Freedom; and War.